It’s always a challenging time because you know, if you’ve ever been responsible for writing up performance reviews, they take A LOT of TIME!

It’s a big investment that for most small businesses (and it’s even worse in large corporations) does not deliver a return. And if you talk to those involved, it probably becomes a negative drain on employee morale, motivation, and engagement.

There is one reason why performance review processes don’t deliver a return on investment in most small businesses.

The reason is because few people understand the purpose for the performance review process.

But, before I can divulge the singular purpose of the performance review that you must understand, focus on, and apply when engaging in the process, I need your help.

And, you will also receive an e-mail with what I believe is the only correct answer, and it is the one that will transform your workplace into a championship performer, after you submit your answer to my survey.

The National Football League season concluded this past Sunday in the United States, and immediately teams fired their coaches after losing seasons.

Seventy percent of the 17 teams with winning records qualified for the championship playoff tournament. Of those five other teams with winning records that didn’t qualify for the post-season, one, the Detroit Lions, fired their coach.

Firing coaches with winning records isn’t unusual.

I wouldn’t be surprised if one of the playoff teams’ coaches that doesn’t get to the championship Super Bowl game loses his job.

After the 2017 Major League Baseball season three managers (Joe Girardi of the NY Yankees, Dusty Baker of the Washington Nationals, and John Farrell of the Boston Red Sox) who led their teams into the playoffs were fired when they failed to reach the ultimate goal, the World Series.

What does this mean for you?

Two things:

Every team has a “championship game vision” and if they don’t achieve that goal or are on track according to its projected timetable, look out!

For the ones with winning seasons that don’t get to that championship game, “winning” just isn’t good enough.

There are four reasons why they may fall short, which are the same four reasons your company may not be achieving its goals:

Strategy,

Personnel,

Leadership and Teamwork, and

Execution

Second, January is the start of the new 2018 business season (if you are on a fiscal calendar year), this is a great time to decide on your “championship game vision?”

Typically, this work should be done in December or sometime in the 4th quarter, which for participants in my Small Business Championship Game Plan program is “training camp,” but January is not too late.

Is your work environment championship ready for this season?

Let’s take this time to assess Your Championship Company – go to this link to take a free short assessment and get the results immediately sent to you.

Do you notice that many, if not most, conflicts in the workplace tend to be between people whose personalities don’t seem to be a match.

This often isn’t, or at least shouldn’t be, the case.

It only becomes a clash of personalities because there was some initial performance or behavior that was not addressed promptly, directly, and respectfully enough.

When these performance and behavior issues are left unaddressed co-workers often take matters into their own hands. Typically, they do it in a dis-empowering manner.

You’ve probably seen it.

A co-worker tries to address the problem by pointing fingers, blaming the other person, and worst of all, questioning the other person’s “intent.”

No wonder this person ends up with a bad attitude and difficult personality. I would too, if people were questioning my intent.

Often, people’s intent is good, but their ability or their approach isn’t at the level it needs to be.

One of the best ways to resolve “personality” differences that stem from co-workers just getting in each other’s way while doing their respective jobs is to separate the individual’s personality and intent, from the actual performance of the job or task.

Focus on whether the individual performed the job and achieved the desired results expected of them.

Take personality and intent out of it.

Assume positive intent. Assume they wanted to do a good job and just missed the mark.

It’s much easier to have a conversation around someone’s performance than someone’s personality.

Never question someone’s intent because then you are making assumptions and trying to be a mind-reader and come across as only looking to serve your own purposes.

The only thing that makes teamwork work is when every individual on the team commits to being a “team” player.

When have you experienced a breakdown in “teamwork?”

What was the cause?

Most of my clients tell me that it’s typically when one or more individuals “drop the ball” on their role in the teamwork.

Every day in athletic events there are great examples of teammates working closely together to make a play.

Yet, each act that allows that play to be successful is an individual act.

A simple example from baseball would be if a batter hits a ground ball to the shortstop. He picks up the ball and throws it to first base and the first baseman drops the ball.

The expected teamwork worked perfectly. Each player moved into their respective (if softball) position as required, BUT, the first baseman failed to execute his role.

In football, the quarterback drops back to pass. He is well protected by the offensive lineman. He throws a perfect pass to the receiver standing alone in the end zone with no defenders in the area for 20-yards.

He, too, drops the ball.

In both of those examples, the flow of teamwork worked perfectly. It was an individual who failed to execute their respective role that caused “teamwork” to fail.

That’s why I say, “teamwork” is an individual sport.

A few years ago I was working on a project to help a senior leadership team at a regional credit union raise their level of “teamwork.”

I asked for definitions of teamwork and one of the participants suggested this:

“Teamwork is a series of individual interdependent successful efforts.”

I loved it! And, with her permission have adopted it.

This is a vitally important concept in workplaces today.

There is too much emphasis on creating teamwork and not enough emphasis on providing individual team members the incentive and the reasons for them to participate in teamwork.

And, when “teamwork” fails, teamwork gets blamed, and no one is responsible or held accountable.

Championship leaders want the best people on their teams. Now that may sound obvious, but that doesn’t always happen because sometimes, their egos get the best of them.

Some leaders self-esteem won’t allow them to hire the best people because they feel threatened.

That’s why I’ve been impressed by the head coach of my favorite hockey team the NY Rangers.

The Rangers head coach, Alain Vigneault just decided to bring on a coach with more experience and more wins as a major league coach.

He knows if the season gets off to a slow start this assistant coach will be inline to replace him.

But, he also knows he has the best chance for overall success with this coach on his staff, to which he is delegating about 40% responsibility (he’ll be coaching the team’s defensemen).

Anyway, great leaders, championship leaders, do not feel threatened by other successful people being on their teams. They embrace having people smarter than them on their teams. They bring a mindset of abundance to the situation with an openness to learning, even from a subordinate.

What is your experience in this regard? Have you known leaders to do similar things, or do you know leaders that have limited an organization’s success by not embracing this concept?

Over the July 4th holiday weekend I began reading a biography on Civil War hero and 17th President of the United States.

As a youth I wasn’t much interested in American history. So, I’m trying to make up for it as an adult.

For the last 10 years I’ve read one or two presidential biographies each year, and I started back with the Founding Fathers.

Half of the Grant biography is about his time in the military and leading the Union Army to victory keeping the United States intact. I just got past the Civil War over the weekend and was enamored by what I learned about Grant.

History hasn’t left us with that great impression of Grant, often portrayed as a heavy drinker or drunkard, but it certainly didn’t seem that way through his Civil War exploits. I may learn more as the book moves into his political career and presidency, but as a military general and leader of men, he was outstanding.

Three leadership concepts that you can apply to your teams that served U.S. Grant well leading the Union Army to victory:

Don’t worry about what your opponent is up to, focus your thoughts and efforts on your own strengths and strategy. Worrying about what your opponent is doing, or will do, is a distraction.

When you’re winning keep the pressure on, don’t sit back and rest on your success, build on it and stay aggressive.

Grant’s cardinal rule was “do not speak ill of a brother officer.” Grant, after much bickering and blaming of others by General William Farrar Smith, and a failure of Smith to own up to his own failings, relieved him of his command. Too many small business owners enable and tolerate gossip in the work environment causing negative, toxic work environments.

All three of Grant’s philosophies are all about communicating as a leader.

And, all three speak to a new, deeper concept I’m developing called, The 3 Primary Workplace Communication Mistakes. I’m almost finished creating a video training series about them.

Episode 11:

Why Leaders Must Focus on Building Trust, & How to Do It Right

Skip interviews “The Trust Ambassador” Bob Whipple, one of the nation’s leading experts on trust in organizations. Skip taps into Bob’s extensive background in workplace trust and extracts golden nuggets that will help you build a high-trust organization regardless of its size.

Listen & you will learn:

Bob’s trust definition

Different ways trust impacts organizations

How to lead with trust

TrustAcrossAmerica.com

The 5 Cs of Trust

The #1 differentiating factor that builds trust as a leader

The TRUST Acronym with traits/principles for creating organizational trust

Episode 10:
The Power & Importance of Trust in the Small Business Workplace

Trust is a one of the most important influences on the success of personal and business relationships. Teams cannot win championships without high-levels of trust between team members. This session explores trust and how to raise the bar on trust in your work environment and on your teams.

Listen and learn:

How to define trust in your workplace so you can raise the level.

The 5 aspects of trust, what they mean and how you can use them.

The two ways trust develops in any small business and the one approach you should apply.

A power question to help you focus on building trust more consistently.

Inspired Audience Member Shares His Experience

The City of Hartford MHIS Division

Satisfied Clients Speak

"The work Skip did with our Information Technologies Division transformed how we communicate and work together, including bringing us a new identity and name, as the city’s Metro Hartford Innovation Services Department.

Skip’s ability to customize his approach and bring flexibility to our specific needs, situation and unique work environment, gave us just what we needed, when we needed it. He’s been a pleasure to work with and brought our organization high-value and a measurable return on our investment."